Disheartened :(

ceri1980 · February 2011

So heres the thing.....

I've been dieting since September but its only really since Christmas that i've become completely focused. I've signed up for a half marathon so ive started training for that too.

Im logging my food daily onto MFP and im exercising frequently.....Jogging around 3 miles a night with a few rest dyas in between. the question is WHY AM I NOT LOSING WEIGHT????!

Im drinking around 1.5 to 2 litres of water a day and im pretty good with my eating (open diary) so im getting a bit disheartened as to why im not losing weight.

HELP.......

33nessy · February 2011

have you tried interval training? apparently it is better than normal cardio for losing fat quickly and it only takes 20mins 3 times a week which sounds crazy. im testing it as of this week to see if the kilos do start sheddin as i too have been doing a lot of exercise eating well etc and have plateaued or weight has come off very slowly...trying to shake it up to see if that makes a difference so heres hoping.

Seesaa · February 2011

well looking at your log. I see several days where you are going over. though are you logging everything?
uhh are you burning the amount of calories you are supposed to for the week?

keeping track of your sodium?

You'll get better advice then mine, but just a few things to think about lol

Plateau's happen to everyone. it's frustrating, but don't let it stop your progress to a healthier live style.

ebonybliss · February 2011

You can Google how much water you should drink for your body weight. Each person is different so if drinking too much water and having a diet high in sodium will cause u to not lose weight. I wish you the best of luck hand in there I know how u feel

idahogirl71 · February 2011

Check your sugar intake...that could be a lot of it. this program says to drink 8 glasses of water a day, but in reality you should drink 1/2 oz for every pound of weight. If you happen to be dehydrating your body that could be the cause of not losing the weight.

ceri1980 · February 2011

have you tried interval training? apparently it is better than normal cardio for losing fat quickly and it only takes 20mins 3 times a week which sounds crazy. im testing it as of this week to see if the kilos do start sheddin as i too have been doing a lot of exercise eating well etc and have plateaued or weight has come off very slowly...trying to shake it up to see if that makes a difference so heres hoping.

No i havent tried interval training but think i may give it ago, its not like ive got anything to lose other that weight!!

keep me posted on how you get on....friend request coming your way!!

holtorfsangel · February 2011

Please don't get discouraged though it is hard not to. I'm close to 80 pounds over weight and over 40. I have been on a strict diet for over 6mths without loosing but I can tell that my strength is improving. My journal on MFP says I've lost 7# but that was only because my first weigh in I had gained a few over my norm. I go to the gym at least once or twice a week but I take karate 3 days every week. I'm logging every thing that goes in my mouth. I make sure everything is healthy with the majority of my calories coming from fruit and vegetables. I don't know what has happened to our bodies but I do feel your pain. I'm talking to you and me when I say this. Just keep going. I have been trying to change up the routine, doing a little different plan at the gym, practicing more in between karate classes, concentrating on holding my stomach in and standing tall and confident. The way I see it, I have never seen a fat black belt karate person so if I continue to go for that goal then the weight will have to follow suit. Have you ever seen a fat marathon runner??? Keep training and I think we are both going to be jumping for joy when it finally hits!!!!

Hearts_2015 · February 2011

Your sodium levels seem off compared to the foods you have logged. Where are you getting your nutrition information? Bacon, processed apple pie, curry, all those foods most definitely have sodium in them but your diary says 0 on the food data. I only went back 4 days or so and that's was something I noticed right off the bat.

You maybe feel you are eating healthy but it's always important to be very accurate in your food logging. Sodium is a weight loss killer, it will have you retaining water (holding water weight = weight gain = no weight loss no matter what else you're doing).

Exercise is good for our bodies but the most important thing of all is the 'diet' we eat being very healthy. Healthy carbs, good healthy proteins, less processed foods (if any) and the list goes on.

Definitely worth checking out the products you're buying/eating and see if the sodium truly is 0, it just simply doesn't seem possible.

Good luck:flowerforyou:

CARNAT22 · February 2011

Are you eating back your exercise calories?

You still have 300+ left for today??

Just a thought.

Also the age old adage - muscle weighs more than fat migth be applicable here?

OneLostSock · February 2011

Just a thought here but are you taking measurements? Sometimes it's not about the numbers on the scales but the inches of loss due to exercise. Whatever it may be though, keep at it. x

Hearts_2015 · February 2011

Are you eating back your exercise calories?

You still have 300+ left for today??

Just a thought.

Also the age old adage - muscle weighs more than fat migth be applicable here?

muscle doesn't weight more than fat! The same weight of fat vs. the same weight of muscle will equal the very same thing. It will be different amounts (volume wise), true because muscle is denser and takes up less room. Fat takes up more room in our bodies. But that's simply a statement many on here repeat and it's not true, muscle DOES NOT weigh more than fat.

ninyagwa · February 2011

Okay...just so this doesn't sound like the blind leading the blind. I have recently enlisted the help of a certified personal trainer who also helps me with my nutrition. I looked through your diaries and it looks like you don't always have a good balance of your protein & carbs vs fat & calories.

This was the breakdown I was given that would be good for losing weight while exercising:
60-65% of your calorie intake should be carbs
15% of your calorie intake should be fats
15-20% of your calorie intake should be proteins

Obviously those numbers don't have to be exact but he was telling me that is the best way to feed your body, also you should be eating more meals a day rather than packing all the calories into a few meals a day.....AGAIN I'd like to state that I am telling you what he told me I didn't study it or anything. You can look up online how many grams of each = how many calories to make it simpler.

Honestly, he had to explain to me a couple times for me to understand what he meant....

Good Luck!

CARNAT22 · February 2011

I only looked at your food diary for today OP - when I went back over the weekend you seem to be eating over your calorie allowance (it happens - believe me I know!!!). Saturday for example you have an evening meal that is pretty much my daily allowance!!!

But if every weekend is like that then you may be un-doing all the good work you do during the week?

I am not having a go - I love food and I love wine hence me being overweight, I spent the whole of last year being good all week and eating / drinking way too much every single weekend. I actually put on 6lbs in 6 months living this way.

It's hard, and it takes alot of motivation BUT I am now getting the hang of continuing to be healthy at the weekends.

I am not depriving myself - I had 4 vodka's Saturday night (with diet coke) plus some crisps {Quavers} but I made sure I exercised. I also had a kiddies meal from M&S for lunch with loads of salad plus a healthy, home-made dinner so I wasd within my calorie allowance.

It can be done, but there is no point being super strict all week and then going totally overboard at the weekends.

It's about moderation and making healthier choices...

Roughgalaxy · February 2011

There is such a thing as drinking too much water, and if your sodium is too high you will retain much of it. Also, don't discount that muscle is much heavier than fat.

Consider me. For the first time in a year I can fit in my skinny jeans again, in fact they are a little loose, however, overall I've really only lost 5 pounds. I've lost inches of fat but packed on a lot of muscle so the scale really hasn't moved that much. Don't worry, a simple truth about getting healthy, is that it just takes time.

Mirabilis · February 2011

lol I get plateaux on the 10's... 200.. 190... 180... and waiting for the next one at 170. I'm actually looking forward to that one.

coronalime · February 2011

I read above about a fat marathoner..I was close to 190 after completing my 1st marathon! So yes fatties can run them! I am down now and run faster and more of it/them but you can for sure be overweight and still "work out"

The problem is..your running 3 miles..thats it..not fast not slow not changing..you probably burn like 150 calories doing it..Your body becomes so efficient at it. My weight didnt start coming off till I switched from just running to tri's. The swimming and biking helped mix it up and I ended up working out more often b.c I could.. Plus how close are you to goal and how much do you need to lose or want to lose? My 1st extra baggage came off "easy"..Now..I am working it. The overages kill me, the lack of working out shows fast and changing it up has become a MUST.
You can do it! The good thing with MFP...If its not working it shows and you have to come up with a new game plan..Find yourself a 10K to register for and follow a Hal Higdon 10K program for a few months..or find a new class

SunnyFitt · February 2011

One thing that comes to my mind is that you might not be eating often enough? Keeping withing your calorie goal is good but keeping your fatburning going at all times requires you to eat often. Never more than 3 hours between a meal is what I would recommend. Also - strength training is good. Muscles burn fat.

Oishii · February 2011

I looked further back in your diary and you've gone way over your calories, and way under, quite often. I would try really sticking to them for a few weeks so you know whether it's working or not.

Also, with the sodium, it's harder to track here in the UK because a lot of people don't bother including it when they add a food, partly, I suspect, because it isn't shown in mg here, ever! We always have it in grams, and I suspect that throws people, and some packaging only has salt, not sodium. So I really don't think mfp helps us much here on that, so common sense is more valuable. If you want less sodium, as people are suggesting reduce the ready meals.

Final thought: are you tracking all your drink calories, eg milk in tea and coffee? They can really add up. Each milky coffee is 30 kcals for me, and that's with skimmed milk.

I really admire all your running. Now I'm my goal weight I should be finding a way to be more active too.

Disheartened :(

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